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Ukrainian doctor slams ‘war’ conditions in country's hospitals
Market reforms leave hospitals on verge of bankruptcy
Dr Olha Kobevko takes a quick break outside the regional hospital in Chernivtsi, Ukraine

A UKRAINIAN doctor has spoken out about the “war” conditions faced by the country’s healthcare workers as they seek to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic.

Dr Olha Kobevko said that trying to treat patients was like being “on the front line” given funding and staff shortages, speaking to a reporter as she tried to fix a broken breathing machine after failing to find an electrician to help.

Dr Kobevko, the only infectious-disease specialist in a hospital in Chernivtsi, said the hospital lacked a centralised oxygen supply system, so nurses have to refill “oxygen pillows” and rush them to patients.

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